Eventbrite vs. Whova

This software is very well suited for a variety of larger events, like lectures and performances. I have appreciated setting it up and allowing it to run around the clock for our participants, which ultimately provides a smoother experience. However, I probably wouldn't recommend it for events where you're expecting a smaller audience. It can take a while to set up exactly as you'd like, and it may not be worth the time if you're expecting 30 people or less (depending on how much info you're trying to gather, of course).

Incentivized

Overall having the Whova app was extremely helpful to provide information and drive engagement in the audience/attendees both on-site and remote. The ability to connect with like-minded attendees both pre-event and during the event was particularly helpful. Clarifying directions for "entering" events remotely would negate user anxiety.

• Eventbrite is a well-known and trusted place for purchasing tickets. That trust helps us sell tickets. It also eliminates the need for integrating some other payment system into a webpage, which would be the alternative.
• Eventbrite makes sending invitations easy. Upload contacts and using contacts from a previous event is very straight-forward. Building emails is simple, since there are a couple of prebuilt templates.
• Discount codes and strategic pricing structures are a significant part of our marketing for events. Eventbrite makes it easy to offer discount codes. We also create several ticket types that include multi-ticket discounts, early-bird type specials and more. Each of which help us reach our audience at the right time with the right price.

Incentivized

• facilitated the sharing of research, perspectives, and resources on topics of interest
• enabled easier connection to new and existing relationships with conference delegates and speakers
• allowed me to catch up on content I missed due to time conflicts for concurrent sessions

• While integration with Facebook is fairly seamless, once you have uploaded the event description to Facebook, any additional revisions must be made on both Eventbrite and Facebook individually. It's not a live integration.
• My initial on boarding was extended by needing to seek information through various blogs, outside users and exploration through the site. More comprehensive training for first timers to the site would be welcome.
• Integration with the manager calendar would help the marketing timeline. It's helpful to get email reminders, but would be fabulous if milestones could be dropped in my calendar.

Incentivized

• Literature and pictures uploaded but no easy way to download the collection.
• No easy way to access information after the period after the conference ended.
• No easy way to access the list of participants and contact information - could be pdf'd.
• There was a little connectivity issues but not much.
• Some of the meetings were scheduled while we slept.
• The cost of using Whova for small meetings.

Incentivized

Excellent platform and easy to use to create events. Eventbrite sets the standard for simple, effective and safe ticketing platforms. Our customers trust Eventbrite and we've always done well when we use this platform for ticketing. They have recently updated some of the virtual connectivity tools which make it even easier to set up and promote virtual events.

Incentivized

We already registered with Whova for our 2024 event and we will continue to use Whova for the foreseeable future as long as the price doesn't rise too high. It was a bit of a shock to see the difference between last year's price and this year's price - nearly 2k increase! We were able to negotiate, thankfully, to lower the price.

Great platform with so many incredible features. It streamlines workflow, communication, messaging, and analyzing data. I know of no other platform that can do what Eventbrite can do for the price or user-friendliness. They also offer great support for new users and integrate well with other platforms (i.e., social media and Sched).

Incentivized

Whova is quite user friendly, and helpful for the conference planner. It has features such as sample emails to attendees and import abilities if you have your sessions on a spreadsheet to avoid having to enter each session manually. Another thing we didn't like was the inability to allow attendees to enter a pre-recorded session only when it is scheduled to be presented. It's either all pre-recorded can be viewed once the conference opens, or none.

We had no availability issues!

We had no performance issues with our event delivery. We did have some meet-ups that had some glitches for some attendees, but I believe they were quickly resolved and were more on the part of user error than anything. Once they got the hang of it, their meet-ups went more smoothly.

Always willing to help out and they have a ton of information handy on their website for self-service. If you can't find what you're looking for, their support team is quick to help out and provide any assistance you may need.

Incentivized

I only had a single issue regarding a photograph that was handled immediately and a colleague somehow ended up with two profiles which was also handled right away. Those two instances are all I have to go by. Other than that it was smooth but I did have ample information regarding who to contact if I experienced an issue

Just jump in, don't over thinking it, doing it will net the very few basic questions you'll have. There's not much complexity so one doesn't need to plan as if moving a canal. It's as simple as can be.

Incentivized

I found Whova to be similar to many social media apps that I already use. It was easy to navigate. This was my second experience using Whova in my presenter role. I liked the icebreaker section to connect with other participants before the event started. I look forward to next year’s event.

My "go to" for event registration has always been Constant Contact because they don't charge additional processing fees above the standard transaction. If it's a more basic event where I just need to capture name, email, and payment, I'll continue to use Constant Contact over Eventbrite. However, if it's more complex and requires marketing, I would choose Eventbrite.

Incentivized

I can't recall the other apps, I've used before, but did have two prior conferences with different apps. I would definitely choose Whova over those other experiences because of the overall package. I also can't say enough about the opportunity to create personal groups to meet with attendees directly. It can often be very intimidating to connect on a larger scale when you don't know anyone, but that option along with the roster (plus option to bookmark people) helped me learn more of my colleagues.

Everyone on our team had their assigned tasks to complete in Whova on a weekly basis and did so with ease and confidence.

• We have greater flexibility using Eventbrite than with our previous system. Previously, we could not schedule events or invites to occur at a specific time. If we wanted to promote our event 1-week in advance, our invite would go out based on the date/time of the event.
• Generally, about half the number of people who register for our events actually attend. But there are occasions when we need to limit registrations, something we couldn't do with our previous system.
• Eventbrite allows us to email our registered attendees ahead of an event with further details, or to follow-up with things discussed during our event. It provides yet another way of promoting our next event.

Incentivized

• Whova made our virtual and hybrid events possible! Our virtual attendees loved the ability to interact and engage with each other, the exhibitors, the speakers and organizers of the event. It also allowed our in-person attendees to do the same, and navigate the conference on-site.
• Whova made organizing the conference possible for our small staffed organization! We only have 1.25 FTEs and were able to pull off a hybrid conference in 2022. It wouldn’t have been possible without Whova!

Incentivized